Please let me start off by saying that Paula and myself want to wish everyone a Happy New Year, and hoping that you and your families had a very Merry Christmas filled with love and laughter.
Now that we’ve all gotten our new tackle and gear from Santa we can get look forward to getting out and chasing our hopefully “not so little” finny friends. I’m really looking forward to the fishing this month as the bass will be transitioning from pre-spawn to post-spawn, and both can lead to some big bites. The pre-spawn fish will be bigger as they go on a feeding frenzy before the stress of bedding, but the post-spawn bite can be very aggressive as they try to build their strength back up. Personally, I’m really not into bed fishing anymore as I would prefer to let the fish “do their thing” and have a healthy spawn to help the population grow, they have enough obstacles reproducing and growing to trophy size without me stressing them more.
Here in Winter Haven we’ll be fishing a variety of depths and tactics, especially in tough frontal conditions should they come through (and they always seem to the 3rd week of the month at least.) There are some basic baits to have tied-on to effectively catch more bass – flukes, weighted swimbaits, a topwater such as a Pop-R or smaller stick bait, a jig (I prefer to have a swimjig as it’s more versatile for my style), and a “deeper” diving crankbait. Of course, it never hurts to have a senko rigged-up.
It’s going to be slightly different game when we head out of Camp Mack’s River Resort to the Kissimmee Chain. If the weather remains stable the fishing can be some of the best of the entire year, and conversely a severe cold front can make it some of the toughest. But it’s my job to still put fish in the boat. Let’s take the “glass is half-full” approach first. With stable weather the fish will be all over the different points and flats and that’s when Gambler EZ swimmers, swimjigs, and speed worms can really excel in catching quality fish. Now, to be prepared if and when the temps drop and the wind blows out of the Northeast – and it normally does later in the month – you need to slow waaaayyyyyyy down. This is when I’ll basically put away everything but a senko or other stick bait of your choice. You’re going to cast out to the individual pads and let that bait sit and soak. When I say slow, I mean I’ve literally let a bait sit for 3-5 minutes, not moving it more than a few inches per rod twitch.
Submitted By: Capt. Scotty Taylor
TMC Guide Services, llc • 855-354-8433
Scott@TMCGuideService.com • TMCGuideService.com
Capt. Scott is the official guide for
VisitCentralFlorida.org & Camp Mack’s River Resort